Programmatic Video Inventory Doubles

March 12, 2014

By Daisy Whitney, MediaPost

Marketers have long cited the shortage of inventory as one of the critical hurdles in the online video advertising business, but there are signs that inventory is expanding, at least when it comes to the programmatic buying market.

The amount of pre-roll inventory for programmatic advertising in the United States more than doubled during the fourth quarter, according to video ad platform TubeMogul’s just-released report, citing a 112% rise in inventory during that time period.

While holiday marketing likely played a part in the boost, the jump is still noteworthy. It both underscores the increasing scope of programmatic video buying and also suggests that publishers are finding ways to grow the pie for themselves and marketers. “After a slight decline in October, there was a consistent increase week-over-week across all tiers for the remainder of the year. Unsurprisingly, the largest jump came the week of Thanksgiving, as publishers ramped up available inventory for the beginning of the holiday season,” TubeMogul said.

Likewise, mobile video inventory grew by 142% during the quarter. Similarly, mobile CPMs ticked up, rising by 19%. Overall, CPMs for pre-rolls declined slightly by 0.5%, driven largely by a 13% drop in prices in the last week of December.

Interactive videos ads are also doing their part to grow the real-time market. Video ad server Vindico has found that interactive video creative can drive engagement by nearly three times on average, compared to repurposed TV creative. Interactive ads are on the rise. Vindico said the number of video ad impressions jumped 77% year over year.